Ethan woke up in the tent where he and Lisa lived. Getting up, he walked over to their rustic kitchen setup and grabbed some bread to eat.

  Seeing Lisa rise with a tired expression, he figured she was probably anxious about the war looming ahead.

  "Want some?" Ethan asked, tossing her a piece of bread. "The event starts at noon. Who knows when we'll get another peaceful moment like this?"

  [The Great War will begin in two hours. All participants, prepare yourselves.]

  The System’s voice echoed before falling silent again.

  Lisa groaned. "This is such a pain. Why did all this chaos have to happen?" She sat on the counter, legs swinging as she grumbled about the absurd timing of the System's arrival on Earth.

  "Lisa, do you really trust this so-called Drakan Kingdom? They don’t seem that reliable to me. And how did Michael manage to communicate with them without crossing the barrier?"

  "No idea. That weird little guy is a mystery," Lisa admitted. "Another question is how he managed to build this city so fast." She hopped off the counter, grabbing her bow.

  "I'm gonna practice for a bit. Don’t do anything reckless." She shot him a warning gnce before heading out.

  Ethan exhaled sharply, turning back to his thoughts.

  After thirty minutes, Michael arrived at the tent, wearing armor and carrying a rapier.

  "We need to talk—and we need help. The war starts in just a few hours, and the Drakan Kingdom just announced they received a huge reward to kill us. We're screwed." He let out a heavy sigh.

  "That was obvious, wasn’t it? Anyone could’ve figured that out," Ethan said, unimpressed.

  "You need help leading these weaklings?" Ethan asked, grabbing his sword and making his way toward the exit.

  "Yes. Without you, we’ll probably lose. Even with you, it might still be tough..."

  Ethan cut him off.

  "And how do you even know I’m that strong?" He didn't recall showing off his full strength in front of Michael—just slightly above average.

  Michael smirked. "My Patron told me about yours. Gotta say, I didn’t think you’d be such a pervert."

  "What?" Ethan frowned. "What did your Patron say about mine? And who even is your Patron?"

  "He said—"

  Before Michael could continue, the ground trembled violently, and the System's voice boomed through the air.

  [The Great War will begin earlier due to certain entities requesting a bloodier battle.]

  ‘W-what? Already?’

  Ethan bolted out of the tent with Michael, gripping his sword as a new notification appeared.

  [Rules and Rewards of the Great War]

  [The Great War is the initial event for any newly integrated universe. It determines the most adaptable and powerful race through battles, alliances, and other means.]

  [The event will end when one side reaches one million casualties.]

  Rules:

  ? Participants cannot request help from entities or Patrons outside their universe.

  ? Unique or rare Sub-Events may occur due to participant choices or through essence payments made by entities seeking specific scenarios.

  ? Rewards, titles, achievements, and abilities will be granted for completing unique or rare missions and at the end of the war.

  ? Completely exterminating the enemy race will grant a title and bonus to all participants based on their contributions.

  ? Since this is a newly integrated universe, the level cap is set at 100. Reaching this threshold will advance a participant’s rank to E and unlock a new ability or css evolution.

  [Good luck. May carnage be your most loyal companion.]

  Ethan turned to Michael. "So, what do you think? Should we rally our forces and attack first, or set up a defense?"

  Michael’s gaze hardened. "We survive. We kill anything different from us and use every resource to its limit."

  With that, he pulled a war horn from his belt and blew into it.

  A loud, piercing sound echoed across the citadel.

  The war had begun.